Episode 594: The Year's Last Listener Emails
Date December 31, 2014 Summary Ben and Sam end the year by answering listener emails about Barry Bonds, baseball in pop culture, Wil Myers, and more. Topics * Baseball in pop culture * Barry Bonds unbreakable records * Backlash to PED users * Ceiling for hitter accomplishments * Wil Myers makeup and work ethic * Teams that don't get shutout * Colorado Rockies and San Diego Padres predictions * Discrepancies between expected and actual player value * Hypothetical MLB current player draft Intro Dana "Short Order" Cooke, "Christmas in Cooperstown" Outro Episode outtake sound clip Banter * Ben and Sam reflect on how long they have been doing the podcast. * Ben says his podcast related New Year's resolution is to "go back to five shows a week, as soon as possible." Sam says his is to "go back to 10 minutes a show." Email Questions * Francis: "I've been rewatching The Wire this holiday season and in the second episode of the last season an Orioles home opener figures into the plot. As the Baltimore Sun reporter mills around outside of Camden Yards, whose name do you think the announcer dropped? That's right, Effectively Wild celebrity, Nick Markakis. So my question is this, what is your favorite random baseball pop culture reference?" * Ivan: "As I am sure you are aware Hall of Fame voting season tends to lead to a lot of Bonds talk because of the man's body of walk, reputation, and general character. There have been three questions that have been chewing at me for quite some time. First, are his single season walks and intentional walks records and I suppose his career marks in those categories, up there with Cy Young's career wins as unbreakable records? Assuming he was indeed using performance enhancing drugs does his run from 2001-2004 represent the ceiling for what a hitter can accomplish with PEDs? Do you think the backlash against PEDs and the PED era began when it became apparent that Bonds was going to break Hank Aaron's home run record? I'm sure there are other factors but I can't help but think if the mid 2000s rolled around and it was, say, Ken Griffey Jr. as well all expected at the turn of the 21st century, or even if we're rewriting history, a more well liked player like Jim Thome or Frank Thomas, challenging the mark, there would not be the kind of radical action and revision that we wound up seeing." * Nathan: "What's wrong with Wil Myers? He was a top prospect and he gets traded? He was a Rookie of the Year and he gets traded? He was traded with Jake Odorizzi, Patrick Leonard, and Mike Montgomery for Shields and Davis. It wasn't thought of as a huge haul for the price. He was traded with Ryan Hanigan for Jake Bauers, Burch Smith, and Rene Rivera, Steven Souza and Travis Ott. Who? What's wrong with Wil Myers?" * Eric: "In the next thirty years will the Padres score the most runs in the league at least once? In the next thirty years will the Rockies allow the fewest runs in the league at least once?" * Dustin: "Has there ever been a bigger apparent discrepancy between the value a player perceives himself to have and the market than Stephen Drew's case? Two years in a row it seems like his demands are completely out of line with the offers. I know it's Scott Boras but you never even seem to hear a real rumor about anyone coming close to signing him. Just seems like a really strange case to me even Kendrys Morales got paid this year." * Scott: "Hypothetical scenario for you: imagine for a moment that the naysayers are all correct, baseball is dying. In an effort to appeal to a young, fantasy sport minded short attention span fanbase, MLB has decided to hold a fantasy draft every five years. Any contract signed between 2015 and 2020 cannot exceed the end of the 2020 season. Prior to the 2021 season everyone is dumped into a free agent pool and redrafted, auction style. With every auction dollar having a real life salary equivalent. Fans would love it because even sad sack franchises get to reboot every few years plus the draft would be can't miss TV. The Player's Association would have grievances but guaranteeing all players free agency every five years would have to quiet some of their concerns. Owners would love it because they would be reviving the business. So why not do this? What are the major flaws to this half baked idea and how might the idea be improved?" Play Index * The segment is based on a bet Sam's dad told him about that he could never lose. Sam and other person (the sucker as he puts it) would each pick a team for the entire baseball season. At the end of each game, Sam would add his team's total runs scored to their previous total (getting total runs scored over the season). The sucker would multiply the runs scored by his team. As long as the team gets shutout once, Sam will almost always win the bet. * Sam looks to see if there are teams that have ever not been shutout. Out of 2,072 MLB seasons there have been two teams that were never shut out. * The 1932 Yankees and 2000 Reds did not get shutout in any game during the season. Notes * Ben liked the baseball scene in Interstellar. Sam mentions some specific episodes from the first season of Cheers that have baseball games on in the background. He also notes a commercial for a frozen yogurt store that features Barry Bonds. * Barry Bonds holds the single season (120) and career (688) records for intentional walks. * Sam feels confident the Rockies will allow the fewest runs in the league in the next thirty years. * Ben thinks Nelson Cruz had a bigger discrepancy between actual and expected/perceived value. Cruz reportedly asked for 5 year, $75 million contract. He signed a 4 year, $57 million contract. Links * Effectively Wild Episode 594: The Year's Last Listener Emails * Blizzberry Commercial Category:Email Episodes Category:Episodes